Great British Menu 2025 unveils initial chef line-up

The initial chef line-up for series 20 of BBC Two’s Great British Menu, which starts on 28 January, has been revealed.

This year’s chefs will fight it out under the theme of “Great Britons”, which will involve drawing inspiration from important people across ancient and modern British history.

Comedian Ed Gamble and chef Tom Kerridge are joined by new judge Lorna McNee, a former Great British Menu champion of champions, and chef director at Glasgow’s Michelin-starred restaurant, Cail Bruich.

The Caterer will be updating this page with chefs representing each region over the coming weeks.

Who are the chefs taking part in Great British Menu 2025?

North West

Jack Bond

Bond is the co-owner and head chef at the Cottage in the Wood in Keswick, a Michelin-starred restaurant with rooms in the northern Lake District. He joined the Cumbria venue with his wife Beth, the former general manager at Chantelle Nicholson’s Apricity in London’s Mayfair, in January 2024 and purchased the property in the summer from long-standing owners Liam and Kath Berney.

Bond is originally from Southport and has worked in restaurants including the three-Michelin-starred Eleven Madison Park in New York and Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in London, where he was development chef. He has also worked with Marcus Wareing at the two-Michelin-starred Berkeley hotel and the Gilbert Scott.

Livia Alarcon

Alarcon is the head chef and owner of La Bistroteca in Liverpool’s Baltic Market. She has worked in the industry for over 10 years, famously becoming head chef at the Middle Eastern-inspired Maray aged just 21, which she took on after turning down a job offer from Jason Atherton. La Bistroteca marks her first solo outpost and pays homage to European bistro culture, with dishes such as steak sandwich, confit duck fries and popcorn mussels.

Eddie Shepherd

Shepherd is the chef and owner of the eight-cover Walled Gardens restaurant in Manchester, where he serves a 12-course botanical tasting menu. He became vegetarian 20 years ago while studying philosophy at university and has continued to explore his passion for sustainable dining through foraging ingredients and making chocolate from scratch. During The Caterer’s visit to his restaurant in 2023, he demonstrated an obsessive attention to detail, starting with a dandelion petal fruit pastille topped with lemon verbena from his raised beds in the garden.

James Hill

Hill is the head chef and owner at the Oak at Curthwaite in Cumbria, the region where he grew up. He started working in hotels aged 14 and eventually moved to London to join the Connaught. His previous restaurant, the Lounge on the Green, was also awarded two AA rosettes and recognised in the Michelin Guide.

Photo: BBC/Optomen Television Limited/Gemma Sharman